One of My Favorite New Businesses in Belize: Delices De France

Just a few days ago, I walked into the new French bakery in San Pedro, Belize and, for the fifth day in a row, I bought a GORGEOUS baguette sandwich for lunch.

Just behind me was a San Pedro traffic officer buying 2 baguettes to-go.  And a mom with her 2 kids in school uniforms buying chocolate croissants.

Zut alors!  I AM IN LOVE WITH THIS NEW BUSINESS ON AMBERGRIS CAYE!  And it’s not just me.

The French bakery, Delices de France, is classic France here in San Pedro, Belize – making really REALLY great French pastries and bread and the baguette?  It is my very favorite.

But let me back up a bit.

The baguette – the long thin french loaf of bread – is made of 4 ingredients and is considered one of the most difficult recipes for any baker to master.  The famous American chef and lover of all things French, Julia Childs wrote that learning to make a proper baguette was “one of the most difficult, elaborate, frustrating, and satisfying challenges I have ever undertaken”.

It can take months, even years, to learn to get the flavor, the texture and the crust just right.  And when it is right?  These four simple boring ingredients – flour, water, yeast and salt – are a thing of beauty – unlike any other bread.

Even Gwenyth Paltrow – “For the most part, I try to be healthy and eat good things, but if you give me a baguette and some Camembert, I’m gonna eat it.”

I have to agree.

Meet the owners, Florent and Sandra.

They hail from the beautiful Champage region of France – north east of Paris – and were looking for a change of pace.  With 2 young children, they wanted a country where their kids could learn good English and where there was no French Bakery.  Sandra’s cousin, young Yvan, is an accomplished baker with many years of experience.  He was even a finalist on a French TV show – a competition between the top bakers in the country.

They visited Ambergris Caye and fell in love.  They took samples of the butter and flour home to see if it would be possible.

Here is our young baker making cheese croissants.

Open for just about 2 months, every single thing that I’ve tasted there is over the top good.  Oh the pastries!

Sacre BLEU this apple tart is perfection.  Buy it by the slice and…don’t even bother taking it home…

There is a booth in the corner – just eat it there.

They have a really impressive operation – now selling over 150 baguettes a day for $3bzd each.

A dough cutting machine temporary being used to warm BUTTER.  And a crepe pan.

They are soon going to start selling fresh crepes – think nutella & strawberries, ham and egg or butter sprinkled with crunchy sugar.   Mmmm…

And in a few months, they will be opening a cafe – great coffee! – in the adjacent empty shop.

It’s all just a thing of incredible beauty.  If you haven’t grabbed a baguette sandwich yet, you MUST.  I LOVE the ham & cheese with lettuce and butter – LETTUCE NEVER TASTED SO GOOD.  The curry chicken is delicious.  But if they have this special – the bacon and avocado with a drizzle of olive oil?  Well then…I insist.

This bakery is such an amazing addition to the island.  Go in and introduce yourself to the lovely couple Florent and Sandra.  It will give you a good excuse to stop in daily.  Maybe grab a quick morning eclair.

Quelle surprise!  I couldn’t be happier to have this shop in San Pedro.  And it sounds like many people are.  Florent estimates that they sell about 1/3 of their goods to local Belizeans, 1/3 to local expats and 1/3 to tourists.  A perfect mix for a business with staying power.

Delices De France is located at the San Cas Plaza across the street from where you pick up your bags at Tropic Air.  They are open 6:30am to 6pm every day but Sunday.

Bon appetit!